AV Policy 3.0: Analysis of Comments from the National Society of Professional Engineers

The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) submitted critical comments about the Department of Transportation's Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0. The 2018 comments from NSPE echo, in many respects, the comments NSPE provided to the Department of Transportation (DOT) about Automated Vehicle Policy 2.0 in 2017. NSPE is concerned...

AV Policy 3.0: Analysis of Initial Comments about Automated Trucking

In my post entitled, U.S. Department of Transportation Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0, I analyzed the Department of Transportation's Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0. In this post, I analyze initial comments concerning automated trucking (semis and tractor-trailers) that the Department of Transportation has received about AV Policy 3.0.
The Comments
Commentators have...

U.S. Department of Transportation Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0

In its Automated Vehicles 3.0, Preparing for the Future of Transportation, the United States Department of Transportation laid out its latest policy on automated vehicles. The Department did not issue regulations on automated vehicles, and instead opted for, in its terms, a "flexible, responsible approach to a framework...

Easy to call them luddites and assert that the alternative is 40k roadway deaths. More difficult challenge is for industry to win their trust, approval and understanding. #AutonomousVehicles #SelfDrivingCars https://t.co/hm33EkFNql

The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) submitted critical comments about the Department of Transportation’s Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0. The 2018 comments from NSPE echo, in many respects, the comments NSPE provided to the Department of Transportation (DOT) about Automated Vehicle Policy 2.0 in 2017. NSPE is concerned that the DOT is not prioritizing public…

In my post entitled, U.S. Department of Transportation Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0, I analyzed the Department of Transportation’s Automated Vehicle Policy 3.0. In this post, I analyze initial comments concerning automated trucking (semis and tractor-trailers) that the Department of Transportation has received about AV Policy 3.0. The Comments Commentators have expressed numerous concern about automated…

In its Automated Vehicles 3.0, Preparing for the Future of Transportation, the United States Department of Transportation laid out its latest policy on automated vehicles. The Department did not issue regulations on automated vehicles, and instead opted for, in its terms, a “flexible, responsible approach to a framework for multimodal automation.” This article will discuss…

In this video, I was a co-panelist with Ed Bradley, the Program Manager for Toyota North America, and Koorosh Olyai, Senior Principal, Advanced Transportation Management Systems for Stantec. We discussed, among other topics, ethical programming of automated vehicles, expected introduction of automated vehicles, rural deployment of automated vehicles, and programming of automated vehicles.

This video is a presentation I gave at the Alaska Forum on Autonomous Vehicles in Anchorage, Alaska. In this presentation, I explain civil liability rules and why many people believe that liability for crashes will shift from the traditional driver to the automated vehicle. I also discuss the Uber crash that killed Elaine Herzberg and…

Imagine that no one would hire you because of a bad decision you made in your past. For example, you may have been convicted of attempted armed robbery and unsworn falsification. That was 18 years ago, but most employers you apply to still view your past as a black mark. Every time you fill out…

Earlier this week, Elaine Herzber was tragically killed in an accident involving an Uber autonomous vehicle. Elaine was walking her bicycle across the street and was struck by an Uber autonomous vehicle. She died at the hospital. This accident should cause us to reflect and consider what happened. Uber should assess why its autonomous technology did…

In my last post, I discussed how semi-autonomous technology’s reliance upon us is likely a fatal flaw of the technology. When accidents are caused by SAE level 2 and level 3 vehicles, the car manufacturer will typically respond to the driver in a similar manner: you have a responsibility to pay attention to the road at all…

Imagine that you own a semi-autonomous vehicle. You purchased the vehicle months ago and each time you put the vehicle into autopilot mode, the vehicle drives safely. Your semi-autonomous vehicle’s ability to drive safely and (perhaps) better than you has made you over-reliant on and have overconfidence in the technology’s ability, causing you to have automation bias.…

The year is 2025. You pull up to a stoplight and patiently wait for the light to turn green. Suddenly, the vehicle behind you collides into your car’s rear bumper. Angry and frustrated, you storm out of your car to “greet” the man driving the vehicle that hit you. “Why didn’t you stop?” you ask.…